Drive against open defacation: Mom and I feel ashamed to go in the open, says Haryana girl in letter to dad

HT Correspondent, Rohtak: In a first-of-its kind move to promote Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, the Bhiwani district

administration has asked girl students in government schools to write letters to their fathers to urge them to build toilets in their homes. The administration has organised a letter-writing competition, wherein three girls will be given prizes for writing best letters to their fathers. The administration has been adopting several ways to end open defecation in the district. Two months ago, the administration had warned to stop PDS (public distribution supply) ration of the people falling below poverty line (BPL) if they did not build toilets in their houses. However, as most of their moves could not yield a successful result, they chose to highlight the problem through girl students. At Government Girls Senior Secondary School, the competition was held on Thursday, wherein girls who don’t have toilets at home wrote to their fathers urging them to build these, while those who have toilets wrote letters asking their family members to start using them. “Mom, grandma, sister, and I feel ashamed to go in the open and face a lot of problems,” wrote a girl student. Another girl highlighted the diseases that open defecation may spread and wrote about social shame it brings to her and her family. “I’m sure my father will act on this touching letter I have written. He is very understanding,” said Savita Kumari, a student.